After losing his job in August, Blake was unable to keep up with payments on his storage shed, a unit that held several pieces of winter clothing.

On Thursday, Blake, along with more than a dozen locals, browsed through racks and tables holding hundreds of coats, scarves, hats and gloves inside the Plainfield Recreation Center during the town’s annual community coat distribution.

“This is a major help and a blessing,” Blake said.

The two-day “Keeping the Community Warm One Coat at a Time” event, sponsored by the recreation department, the Plainfield Rotary Club, St. John’s Church and the Plainfield Family Resource Center, has typically drawn up to 40 families since its inception five years ago, Recreation Director Mya Ambrogi said.

“We’ve got about 200 coats this year that have been collected all year long,” she said. “The community is really good about helping us with this and they’ve been very generous.”

After the event ends today, Ambrogi said any leftover clothing will be sent to other sites, including the community kitchen and the local Salvation Army. A rack of available winter coats will stay in the recreation department lobby, where residents can drop-off and take needed clothing for the next few months.

Plainfield resident Nimesh Mehta searched for a heavy coat for his 20-month-old daughter on Thursday, picking up and re-racking several clothing articles before settling on his choices.

“Coats are expensive and having this here is very helpful,” he said.

Nancy Allyn, a member of the Packerville Baptist Church in Plainfield, spent part of Wednesday bringing loads of donated clothing to the recreation center. She said the congregation’s efforts were in direct response to the need in town.

“And it wasn’t just people in the church who gave, but relatives, too,” she said. “This is just something that needs to be done to help those who can’t afford it themselves.”